Summon
Summon
"Keuk! Trusting myself is bullshit. I should trust someone trustworthy."
I had a feeling, but sure enough, I got sick.
Well, I did happily gobble down food that was a whole day past its expiration date in the middle of summer, so it would be stranger if I hadn't gotten sick.
I suddenly felt pathetic about myself.
Grrrgle! Grrrgle!
"Ugh!"
But I didn't have the luxury to leisurely reflect on myself right now.
Various symptoms like thirst, headache, abdominal pain, and nausea were tormenting me.
Most of all, diarrhea.
My intestines had been empty for a long time, but this damn diarrhea just wouldn't stop.
Thanks to that, the proportion of time I spent sitting on the toilet now exceeded the time I spent manning the counter.
If our ill-tempered store owner found out about this...
Ddiriring!
Incoming - Store Owner
'Right, there's no way she wouldn't know.'
I glanced sideways at the camera mounted above the counter, then gave a bitter laugh and answered the store owner's call.
-Hey! Did you put honey in the toilet bowl?! Why do you keep going in and out?!
As soon as I answered the phone, a hysterical high-pitched voice assaulted my eardrums.
No, even if she checked the situation with the camera, shouldn't she at least ask about my condition first, instead of just yelling right away?
The store owner's behavior made my blood boil, but I couldn't raise my voice in return, so I calmly offered my apologies and explained the reason.
"I'm sorry. I, uh, got an upset stomach."
-...Is it very serious?
The store owner asked in a worried voice.
She might be a bit ill-tempered, but still, the store owner isn't completely heartless...
-If you're really bad, lock up and go to the hospital. If you collapse from holding it in, I'll be the only one suffering.
...Or is she?
-Hey, are you listening to me?
"Ah, yes. Of course, I'm listening. But going to the hospital is a bit..."
Because of the newly spread virus, Malum, the hospital was currently a more dangerous place than anywhere else.
If you were unlucky, you could end up catching a deadly disease at the place meant to cure illnesses.
-Then what do you want to do?!
"I'm sorry, but could I leave early? I could explain the situation to the next part-timer..."
-You're the only part-timer left right now! Stop talking and just go to the hospital!
With those words, the store owner hung up, as if she didn't want to hear any more.
"Hmph~. She says it so easily. It's not her problem, is it?"
KakaoTalk!
"Now what is it?"
Store Owner - Just so you know, I'll deduct the time you're away from your salary.
"...Agh! That bitch, seriously! I really want to punch her in the gut!"
At the heartless store owner's message, I gnashed my teeth and cursed her.
But that was only for a moment; unable to endure the renewed abdominal pain, I eventually headed to the hospital as the store owner had said.
Aigo, aigo
Mom! Mom, I'm so sick!
Teacher-nim! How much longer do we have to wait?!
As I expected, the hospital was bustling with Malum Suspected Patients.
There were so many suspected patients that they were using the main hospital building, while other patients were relegated to separate wards.
Realizing this belatedly, I followed the nurse's guidance to a separate ward.
"Park Minsu-hwanjanim, please come this way."
"...Yes."
After registering at internal medicine and waiting for over an hour, my name was finally called by the nurse.
The thought of my salary being cut made me very annoyed, but seeing the nurse, who was so exhausted she looked like she was about to collapse, I couldn't bring myself to get angry.
"What are you here for?"
The doctor I finally met didn't even look at me and asked a trite question.
Even for a doctor, her attitude was too arrogant.
But just like before, I suppressed my anger.
Because the doctor looked as tired as the nurse?
Of course, that was one reason, but there was a bigger one.
'This kind of person is a doctor?'
An intelligent and mature face that showed traces of time.
Slightly wavy, long, voluminous hair and a voluptuous body that couldn't be hidden even by a gown.
On top of that, enormous breasts that you wouldn't even easily see in adult films.
The Female doctor before me was so beautiful that it made me wonder why she was a doctor and not a celebrity.
Was there such a beautiful doctor in this hospital?
If there had been, there's no way I wouldn't have known.
It seemed they were short-staffed, so she must have been dispatched from somewhere else.
"Haa~. I asked what you're here for."
It seemed I had been too distracted.
The Female doctor let out a deep sigh and repeated her previous question.
Since it was clearly my fault, I bowed my head in apology and then described the symptoms that were still tormenting me.
"You've gotten sick. Did you eat any spoiled food?"
"Yes, I ate a lunchbox that was a day past its expiration date."
"...One that was kept in the refrigerator?"
"No. One that was left at room temperature."
When I answered honestly, the Female doctor's gaze, full of exasperation and pity, returned.
No, it's true it was a foolish thing to do, but even so, treating me like an idiot so openly is too much!
"Haa~. I'll prescribe you some medicine, so take it and get plenty of rest."
When I showed my displeasure, the Female doctor sighed deeply again and rattled off cliché remarks.
I gave a small nod and then immediately stormed out.
Just as I was about to open the door and leave, the Female doctor's voice, full of disapproval, came from behind me.
"Take good care of yourself. Don't make things harder for medical professionals who are already struggling."
"...You should be kind to your patients. Don't be so arrogant just because you're a doctor."
Unable to suppress my anger at the Female doctor's criticism disguised as advice, I retorted.
Then, without looking back, I left the examination room.
Just before the door closed, I faintly heard a snort, but I ignored it, not wanting to cause any more trouble.
'Both the store owner and that Female doctor just now. Why are all pretty bitches so rude?'
After paying the medical bill and leaving the hospital, I looked up at the sky and lamented.
That's when it happened.
-Ddiriring! 30 percent of humanity has been harmed by an attack from the Outer Gods, deities beyond the solar system.
-Ddiriring! As the conditions have been met, the Human Protection Program, pre-arranged by the Creator, will now be activated.
-Ddiriring! All of humanity will be granted Special Abilities.
-Ddiriring! In the event of activation failure, machines with the potential to inflict severe harm upon humanity will temporarily cease operation.
-Ddiriring! ......
-Ddiriring! ...
-Ddiriring! Vaccine production has begun. Humanity, please do not give up and survive until the day the vaccine is completed.
-Warning! The Outer God has noticed the activation of the Human Protection Program! Quickly evacuate to a safe place and choose your Special Ability!
'...Were hallucinations and auditory hallucinations also symptoms of getting sick?'
I tried to ignore the alert sounds ringing in my ears and the notification windows obscuring my vision, and returned to the hospital.
Although I didn't like it, it seemed I had to go back to the Female doctor and get re-examined.
But the moment I stood in front of the main entrance, I saw it through the glass door.
Kyaaak! Help me!
Why are people suddenly acting like this?!
Patients, calm down! Calm down—keoheuk!
Ru-run! It's zombies! Zombies have appeared!
People fleeing in utter panic, and zombies chasing after them.
'It's zombies. Real zombies!'
The sight of them tearing and devouring human flesh and blood raw was, by all accounts, definitely zombies.
My Survival Instinct loudly rang an alarm.
Before the zombies could spot me, I quickly turned around and headed for the convenience store.
Since it was so close, I was able to reach the convenience store in the blink of an eye.
Cheolkeok! Cheolkeok!
As soon as I opened the door and entered, I locked all the doors and windows that connected to the outside.
I turned off all the brightly lit lights and then holed myself up in the break room.
Only then did the loudly ringing alarm bells cease to be heard.
"Ha, hahaha. To think I'd experience something like this in my life."
Even after seeing it with my own two eyes, I found it hard to accept reality.
Zombies! Outer Gods! Those are things that only appear in novels! Why are they suddenly popping up in reality?!
I let out a string of curses.
Inside, of course. What if I said it out loud and zombies swarmed in?
Only after cursing for a long time was I able to somewhat accept reality.
'Alright. So what should I do next?'
What else? Of course, I need to check my Special Ability.
My heart pounded fiercely for a different reason than before, as if I had become the protagonist of a novel.
I tried to calm my emotions and opened the 'Special Ability Window'.
For reference, the Human Protection Program, or System for short, granted Special Abilities in a game-like format for the convenience of humanity.
◎Special Ability
-Physical
-Psychic
-Summoning
The Special Ability Window currently visible was the result.
Since it only supported Special Abilities, it was clearly an inferior version of the God-tier Status Window.
'Well, at least they gave me this much. By the way, what should I choose?'
Humanity can choose one of these three Special Abilities—Physical, Psychic, or Summoning—and strengthen their Special Ability or grant new effects using Points obtained from hunting zombies.
Once a Special Ability was chosen, it couldn't be reversed, nor could two Special Abilities be chosen simultaneously.
'The System told me to survive until the vaccine is complete. So...'
Whether I could survive until then, or meet my death before.
Everything depended on this single choice.